NATO Enlargement: Albania, Croatia, and Possible Future Candidates
NATO Enlargement: Albania, Croatia, and Possible Future Candidates Vincent Morelli Section Research Manager Carl Ek Specialist in International Relations Paul Belkin Analyst in European Affairs Steven Woehrel Specialist in European Affairs Jim Nichol Specialist in Russian and Eurasian Affairs April 14, 2009 Congressional Research Service 7-5700 www.crs.gov RL34701 CRS Report for Congress Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress NATO Enlargement: Albania, Croatia, and Possible Future Candidates Summary At the April 2-4, 2008 NATO summit in Bucharest, Romania, a principal issue was consideration of the candidacies for membership of Albania, Croatia, and Macedonia. The allies agreed to extend invitations to Albania and Croatia. Although the alliance determined that Macedonia met the qualifications for NATO membership, Greece blocked the invitation due to an enduring dispute over Macedonia’s name. After formal accession talks, on July 9, 2008, the foreign ministers of Albania and Croatia and the permanent representatives of the 26 NATO allies signed accession protocols amending the North Atlantic Treaty to permit Albania and Croatia’s membership in NATO. To take effect, the protocols had to be ratified, first by current NATO members, then by Albania and Croatia. On April 1, 2009, the two countries formally became the 27th and 28th members of the Alliance when the Ambassadors of the two nations deposited the ratified instruments of accession at the State Department. On April 4, 2009, Albania and Croatia were welcomed to the NATO table at a ceremony held at the NATO summit in Strasbourg, France. Both nations are small states with correspondingly small militaries, and their inclusion in NATO cannot be considered militarily strategic.
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